The short answer is, you will likely need both. A high speed mill is very versatile, but in most cases, you will still need to edm small details. The Makino F5 is an awesome machine. We use ours for copper electrode manufacturing as well as hard-milling. You would not be disappointed with this machine. It is a MAJOR step up from a Haas. Carmen

Make a new operation from stratch using the same parameters and you will likely get a good result. For some reason, copying and pasting an HST toolpath can result in the "unable to determine toolpath" . I've seen it many times. Carmen

We have a seamless set-up on our Makino F5. We just drag and drop our nc files onto the Makino data server ( on the control ) and then execute them up from the schedule list. Carmen

That create boundary C-hook is one step ahead of "useless". The boundaries it creates are fairly inaccurate, not to mention very rough. Hard to believe, given modern computing power. The HST pencil tool path takes a ton of tweaking before you get anything acceptable. I've just learned to live with it. Carmen

My guess would be that the tool you are using is considered too large to cut that area effectively. You could add an extension to the surface to make it larger. Carmen

It's not a Mastercam issue. We use Pro E/Creo and convert dozens of files every day with the Mastercam/Pro E converter without issue, except, on the odd occasion where there is something wrong on the ProE end. Carmen

We have Blum lasers on our Makino's and Mikron's and can measure tools down to .008" diameter with an accuracy of .0002" with no problem. Carmen

In order for anything to be done, you must first admit that something NEEDS to be done. Without acceptance or acknowledging the issues publicly, nothing will ever be done. I completely agree with Daniels posts and suggestions in this thread. Feedback via resellers to the end users is crucial. Currently, resellers are nothing more than a safety buffer for CNC Software. In follow-up to Daniel's suggestions, as the CEO, I would appoint a forum monitor to answer the questions and ACKNOWLEDGE the issues. Following up on these issues would also be key. Listening to the customers issues and suggestions are critical. If in fact Mastercam is written on some outdated structure that has run its course, then CNC Software should embrace whatever new IT technology is available and start from scratch. I certainly don't expect my computers to last forever and they are replaced after a number of years as new technology hits the marketplace, so why shouldn't the software follow suit? Many of the more vocal members on this forum have a tremendous amount of experience with the software, and are managers, supervisors, department heads, etc. These same people are the ones reporting back to senior management when the issue of maintenance renewal comes up. When issues are ignored, over and over, why would any of these intelligent people recommend renewing their maintenance?

Tyler, I truly do hope that the right people have this brought to their attention. After my meeting with Brian Summers ( Vice President ), Doug Nemeth ( Corporate Sales Manager ) and Kevin Hesch ( In-House Solution Sales ) last summer, I came out of the meeting with the general sense that the "upper tier" of CNC Software is completely out of touch with their customer base, and have no clue as to the severity of their core customers issues and complaints. I asked a lot of pointed questions to which the answers were met with red faces. My main agenda was trying to get them to understand that their main customer base was less interested in new bells and whistles, and more interested in getting what we already have to function the way it is supposed to. Again, issues that were introduced in "X", ten years ago, are still outstanding issues. I have done nothing but support In-House Solutions for 21 years and counting, and we currently hold 14 Mastercam Mill/Lathe licences. I believe my voice should be heard. Paying maintainence for these seats equals a lot of money. If our company treated our customers with the same disregard that CNC Software treats their customers, our customers would turn their backs on us. Perhaps the time has come for Mastercam's user base to follow suit. Carmen

It's actually G187, but I hear what you are saying. P1, P2, and P3 simply play around with the tolerances to obtain "some" speed. Carmen

Running a high-speed machining tool path on a Haas is the equivalent of pushing on a rope. The old Haas controls only had an 8-block lookahead, and even the new VM machines only have something like a 50 block lookahead. To run a highspeed tool path effectively, you need a proper machine that also utilizes a high-speed control. Makino's ( and similar ) have anywhere from 500 to 1000 block lookahead which allow the control time to synchronize the servo motors to achieve high accuracy. On a Haas, setting 85 ( corner rounding ) is essentially a type of tolerance control. The factory default value is .050" which is a joke and the only way a Haas will ever achieve anything even close to the programmed feedrate. If you reduce this value to obtain a higher accuracy, the feedrate will drop like a rock. Having said this, a high-speed tool path WILL RUN on a Haas, which will make for smoother motion for the machine, however, forget about accuracy or speed. Carmen

Quote: "They believe CNC is just after the maintenance dollars" Truer words have never been spoken. This was exactly one of my comments to Brian Summers when I met with him last year. His red face spoke volumes. My reasoning was that CNC Software has the largest user base, and quite likely, the highest percentage of customers paying maintenance dollars. Given that, their revenue would be vast which SHOULD facilitate proper testing and development of the software. Ultimately, we the users, essentially are nothing more than an unpaid test-bed for their software. The crap that CNC has released over the last 2 or 3 years should be embarrassing to them. It still boggles my mind that issues that surfaced with the "X" product line are still issues. How long has it been now? 10 years ?????? Most of us just have too much time, or money, invested in the software to switch to something else, and CNC just takes advantage of this fact. The best thing that could ever happen to CNC Software would be to have someone buy them out, who actually care about their customers success and take their software offering seriously. Carmen

In this day and age, prints should be only used for reference and discussion purposes. For as long as solid modelling has been around, there is really no reason for engineers not to be up to speed. I mean, really, do we still use abacus' ? Carmen

The most glaring error I see in your settings is that you have the "rapid retracts" button checked. You should never use rapid moves in a high-speed tool path. Mastercam does not check for dog-leg moves, and it is these "dog-legs" that WILL cause a crash or gouge. You should uncheck the box and use a high feedrate. This will force the output to a linear move. Carmen

Whenever I import a model that is in "model space", I move the geometry to the origin that I will be using, and the "top" construction plane represents the most obvious "top" for the part. The the follow-up WCS make more sense. It usually only takes a couple of minutes, so it really doesn't matter what method you use. I just try to be consistent and make my files easier to understand for anyone that may use my file at some point down the road. Carmen

You should not be using "rapid moves G00" in a high-speed toolpath. Use a high feedrate which will produce linear "rapid" moves. Due to dog-legging on the machine, it can lead to a crash. Carmen

All the new bugs are compatible with previous versions.

I've had fairly good success up to around 100MB, but then after that, it can be full of adventure. Carmen

I took delivery of our second PS95 on Friday. There are a number of improvements from our first one that just tuned 2 years old last week. It will be interesting to see the differences once it is set up later this week. Supposedly, Makino made some software improvements that make it 30% faster for 3D machining. Not to say it was slow in the first place. They are going to upgrade the software in our first PS95 too. We also have a new Mikron HSM 700 scheduled for delivery at the end of April.

Without a doubt ......... Powermill. Carmen

I live in G'town, but I work in Mississauga.

I've used some of their tools for years. They work great and last a long time. Carmen

As a workaround, you can do that using holders. Just define your tool as a .250" end mill ( or whatever ) and then add the taper as the first element of your holder. I've been using this technique for years. Carmen

No more guessing required.

Ya, but if the job came with a "company car", you might change your tune. Those things are sweet.